A123 Systems is the provider for the battery packs used in several electric and hybrid vehicles on the U.S. market today, including the Fisker Karma. A123 produces lithium-ion batteries and was the recipient of multiple federal grants from the U.S. government.

A123 Systems filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on October 16 after a deal with a Chinese auto parts company that would have rescued it collapsed.

The same day the company filed for bankruptcy protection, it received a payment of $946,830 from the U.S. government as a part of its $249 million Department of Energy grant for developing clean energy technology.

The grant has an outstanding balance of $115.8 million, and A123 is still eligible for the remainder of its grant funds if it decides to update or expand its manufacturing capacity.

Republican Senators John Thune and Chuck Grassley have been vocal in opposing any federal grant money being giving to A123 and have pressed the Department of Energy to explain why grant money has been continually given to the battery maker even as it has faltered and filed for bankruptcy protection.

A spokesman for the Energy Department, Bill Gibbons, said, "The Energy Department takes its responsibility to be good stewards of the taxpayers' money very seriously."

Let's say I petitioned donors for a grant on studying the reproductive cycle of the fruit bat. Some donors gave me 1 million dollars to to this. It's not a gift, as I must use that money to study fruit bats. I can't just go out and buy a Ferrari and 6000sqft home. There's accountability, and even the potential for criminal charges if there was any deception and misuse of funds.